The COVID-19 pandemic made people more eager to be outside and see nature, which led to a rise in the popularity of national park vacations.
These journeys continue to be really well-liked choices.
However, the high demand results in significant crowding throughout the summer, which is the busiest travel season.
To get an early start at locations like Utah's Arches National Park, some visitors have started rising before the sun rises.
Officials at America's parks are being forced to take action to control visitor numbers due to the parks' enormous popularity.
In addition to announcing plans to reinstate its timed ticket system in the summer of 2023, Glacier National Park in Montana has also placed restrictions on additional entrances.
The Going-to-the-Sun Road, a 50-mile stretch that crosses the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains, is a popular tourist attraction.
One of the most well-known features of Glacier is this highway, which is undoubtedly the most beautiful in the country.
Plan your visit in advance if you wish to see it.
If coming from the West entrance, you will require a reservation to take in the grand panoramas and outlooks along the route from 6 am to 3 pm every day from May 26 through September 10.
The park is often busiest at that time of day.
If you're thinking about visiting Glacier, tickets should become available on February 1.
In order to make sure you don't miss the opportunity to take that breathtaking drive, add a reminder to your calendar.
All the activities offered in Glacier National Park are in high demand, as has been noted, so make your reservations well in advance to prevent disappointment.
In some locations, such as the Going-to-the-Sun Road corridor, Many Glacier, or Two Medicine districts, visitors who have reservations for hotel, camping, transportation, or commercial activity may enter using their reservation instead of a $2 ticket.
New for 2023
This year, more entries to Glacier National Park were made available for reservations.
According to park officials, the choice to include Many Glacier and Two Medicine valleys in the reservation system was made after a review of the data gathered over the preceding two years.
From July 1 through September 10, 2023, between the hours of 6 a.m. and 3 p.m., the east side St. Mary entrance will also need reservations.
Without a reservation, visitors to the east side of the park will still be able to explore Two Medicine and Many Glacier before and after 3 p.m. They can attend the St. Mary visitor center to get access to the free shuttles that will take them to Going-to-the-Sun Road.
The availability of vehicle reservations through two different sorts of booking windows is another innovation for the 2023 season.
A block-release system will be used to make some bookings accessible about four months or 120 days in advance.
On February 1, 2023, at 8 a.m. MST, Recreation.gov will open for the first set of advanced reservations.
For the period of May 26 through June 30, bookings for entry onto Going-to-the-Sun Road or the North Fork will be accepted.
The next release, which includes the reservation areas for Going-to-the-Sun Road, North Fork, Two Medicine, and Many Glacier, will take place on March 1, 2023, for the period of July 1 through July 31.
Reservations will be open for all regions beginning on April 1, 2023, for the dates of August 1 through August 31.
All locations will accept reservations starting on May 1, 2023, for the dates of September 1 through September 10.
Similar to the previous year, a part of bookings will be accepted on a rolling basis starting at 8 a.m. 24 hours beforehand for all park sections.
Tickets will only be valid for three days rather than seven, which is a change from 2022.
Officials from the parks did this in the hopes that more visitors would have the opportunity to enjoy Going-to-the-Sun Drive's winding cliffside road and breathtaking views.
If you don't stop, you can complete the entire route in around two hours, according to the Parks Service, if you're wondering how much time to allocate for the trip.
What good does that do, though?
Budget about four hours to complete the entire route, taking into account that you'll likely stop a few times to enjoy the breathtaking vistas and grab some great pictures for Instagram.
FACEBOOK